


Dark Tides

by Crowly



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pirate, F/M, I needed rival pirate captains in my life, Kylo Ren is Not Nice, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rape/Non-con Elements, Rey's older than Ben OOP, Rivalry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-07
Updated: 2020-08-07
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:08:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25762654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crowly/pseuds/Crowly
Summary: The map is pinned in place by a dagger at the center of Rey’s living quarters. She stares at it when alone, nursing rum stout enough to grimace through. One ankle slung over the other on the edge of a desk that needed sanding. There’s laughter somewhere beyond the door and she knows they’re burning through their supplies fast.It’s arrogant, but they could afford to replace everything twice after this haul. If it had been any other map she would have proposed a level of caution, to keep rationing like mice in the hole. But it’s not just anyone’s map.It’s Kylo Ren’s treasure.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7





	Dark Tides

**Author's Note:**

> Hiya, thanks for taking the time to click on this mess of a fic. I wrote it in my spare time before a trip, so I apologize if there's mistakes galore!

Rey shed any regard for her life like snakeskin. 

In the dangerous world of pirating, there survived two rules, existing in their own simplicity: remain faithful to not only your captain, but your crew. Rebelling against this resulted in a punishment worse than death. The second, much harder to endure rule--depending who you were: leave another man’s treasure alone. 

But Rey was no man and who was she to turn a blind eye to opportunity?

The paper had been through hell. It’s a miracle it survived the journey shore, but she found it, rather it found  _ her _ . All wrinkles and water stains. The wind carried it off the base of the shore on her way out of Jakku. It bumped into her boot’s toe innocently enough. If it hadn’t been for the bold and, notably, large penmanship she might have ignored it. But it’s ultimately eye-catching enough for her to bend over and sweep it up. If it hadn’t been for Finn’s proximity as they were leaving, she might’ve collapsed then and there in the sand. 

Her hat tumbles off and it’s rolling off, secondary in importance as she devours the contents of this page. 

The map is pinned in place by a dagger at the center of Rey’s living quarters. She stares at it when alone, nursing rum stout enough to grimace through. One ankle slung over the other on the edge of a desk that needed sanding. There’s laughter somewhere beyond the door and she knows they’re burning through their supplies fast. 

It’s arrogant, but they could afford to replace everything  _ twice _ after this haul. If it had been any other map she would have proposed a level of caution, to keep rationing like mice in the hole. But it’s not just anyone’s map. 

It’s Kylo Ren’s treasure. 

A name she knew better than her own. 

The thrill of having something that belonged to him struck her core like a branding iron. There’s heat roiling in her stomach and she can hardly blame it on the drink. She laughs, a jarring short bark in the privacy of her room. The date is printed on the paper, the same day she found it, and she knows he’s out there pushing his crew to the breaking point in a maddened effort to find it. If they were smart enough to replicate the location, they’re moving fast to reach it. 

Unfortunately for him, Rey has the edge. Poe, their helmsmen, is cinching the distance between them and that glorious X by the minute. 

Rivals since youth, Rey often joked it was written in the stars that they loathe each other. Before Kylo, there was his father, Captain Solo, someone she respected and idolized. A fair man who offered himself as a mentor and always had a story to tell in whatever exotic tavern he stumbled into next. The most unbelievable tale would have to be the one where he personally met a princess, sharp as a tack, capable, and so beautiful, he would emphasize this often. If it hadn’t been for the dark-haired boy they brought into the world a year later, it might’ve died with him another drunken fable. 

Sometimes Rey wished it was all fiction. Her hands shake when she thinks of him, thinks of all the damage he’s done, the people he’s hurt. A man who murders his own father and claims the ship for keeping as if he deserved it. A vulture who feasted on the good fortune of others. The glass in her hand trembled with anger, and if it hadn't been for the knock on her door it might’ve cracked. 

“Come in,” she called, wiping a hand down her face and finding it damp. 

It’s Rose, her owl-like gaze darting back over her shoulder like whatever’s outside might disappear. “On the horizon, captain! Poe’s done it!” 

  
  


It’s windy outside and there are animals stirring in the trees. 

The island is dense with forestry, you couldn’t see a foot in front of you without a machete. They anchored just on the brink of dawn, when the moon still shone, yellow between the clouds and heavy on the canopy above. Vines twisted into each other like veins, thick against the blade and providing little give. It’s a draining trek, but a necessary one. Every footstep is matched to a body, because there isn’t room for error. 

Their torches illuminated the blind spots, and they know that soon they won’t be alone. It depends on them alone to make it to the marked location before anyone else, and the stress wrung everyone’s nerves out. Rey tugged at her tunic, the laces wound tight so as to not get snagged and she could hear herself breathing, slow and routine. 

“It’s somewhere here,” she murmured, boots digging into soft earth. Rose slipped her the shovel, and Rey clutched it like a life preserver. “Thank you.” 

They work in tandem, searching for an odd spot. The compass arms shake in Finn’s hand as he sits on an overturned log and Poe scoffs as he passes, surely making an off-handed remark about wishing he could lounge around. Rey pays them little mind as she wanders off, not too far, but just on the perimeter of the location. The longer she steps over clusters of wild flowers and ivy, her heart starts to sink lower. What if she had been wrong about this? What if the map was old, disposed of, maybe for someone like Rey to find and celebrate over like a  _ fool _ . 

It lowers her into a crouched position, twisting her inside into a knotted mess as she worries at her calloused hands. The reality of walking away empty handed makes her light-headed and her hand darts out to support her as she tilts. 

The stone’s chilly under her palm, textured with a river of fractures. Her vision shifted sideways, catching the glimmer of a single false gem. It’s a monkey statue and it’s missing an eye. Suddenly she’s lost her breath. 

“If I were to hide my treasure…” Han mused, squinting at the sky like it held the answer, before cocking a crooked grin her way, “I’d put it under a monkey.” 

“A monkey?” Child Rey balked, choking on the absurdity and he just  _ laughed _ . 

“Yeah, they’re all over out there, ya know, greedy little things. You like monkeys, kid?” 

_ Gods above _ , she loved them in that moment. The clouds seemed to open and morning poured through with a vengeance, spilling warm light across that damned statue with reverence. She cracks the top and the goods pour outward, spilling at her feet. Gold, rubies, jewelry that winks back at her. It’s too good to be true and she finds herself lavishing in it, covering her arms in chains until they’re heavy. 

Rey’s mouth opens to call for her crew and her eyes are wet with unfiltered relief. It blinds her to the hand that lowered to grab her own and lift her upward. 

“I've--I’ve got it,” she stammers, eyes still glued to her prize. 

“No,” interrupts a voice that raises the hair on the back of her neck. 'No, no, no,' she pleads with whoever will listen as she re-adjusted her gaze and finds  _ his _ , murky and bottomless. “I think I’ve got you, Rey.” 


End file.
